The 179th Division () was created in February 1949 under ''the Regulation of the Redesignations of All Organizations and Units of the Army'', issued by Central Military Commission on November 1, 1948, basing on the 23rd Brigade, 8th Column of the
Huabei Military Region Field Force. Its history could be traced to the 23rd Brigade of Taiyue Military District, activated in December 1945.
The division was part of
60th Corps. Under the flag of the 179th division, it took part in many major battles in the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...
, including the
Linfen Campaign
Linfen Campaign (临汾战役) was a series of battles fought between the communists and the nationalists during the Chinese Civil War to control the city of Linfen, and resulted in the communist victory.
Prelude
After the Yuncheng Campaign ( ...
,
Jinzhong Campaign,
Taiyuan Campaign, and
Chengdu Campaign
The Chengdu campaign was a campaign fought between the Communists and the Nationalists during the Chinese Civil War in the post World War II era and resulted in Communist victory and capture of Chengdu, national capital of the Republic of China ...
. The division (then brigade) became the first unit that breached into the city perimeter during the Linfen Campaign, and received the honorific title of ''Linfen Brigade''() after that.
In March 1951, the division was deployed into Korea as a part of the
People's Volunteer Army along with the 60th Corps. In September 1953, the division left Korea.
The division was then garrisoned in
Bengbu
Bengbu () is a city in northern Anhui Province, China. Its population was 3,296,408 registered residents at the 2020 census. 1,968,027 lived in the built-up area made of four Bengbu urban districts and Fengyang County in Chuzhou Prefecture, larg ...
,
Anhui Province
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
.
In November 1953, the 559th Artillery Regiment was activated and attached to the division.
From April 1960, the division was renamed as the 179th Army Division(). By then the division was composed of:
*535th Regiment
*536th Regiment
*537th Regiment
*559th Artillery Regiment
In January 1961, the division was defined as one of the first ten ''combat alert divisions''.
In February 1961, the 283rd Tank Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment joined the division from the
181st Army Division.
From July 1962, the division maintained as a ''northern division, category A''.
[陈显龙:60军战史丛书-国防建设时期.中国友谊出版社.ISBN 7-5057-2124-0.pp.85]
From June to November 1962, the division was deployed to
Fujian Province
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...
for
counter-invasion operation against the
ROC Army. The invasion did not happen and the 179th returned to its barracks in November.
On September 30, 1967, 283rd Tank Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment detached from the division to join the newly-activated
9th Tank Division.
In August 1969, 566th Artillery Regiment was renamed the Artillery Regiment, 179th Army Division.
In September 1985, the division was redesignated as the 179th Infantry Division() and reconstituted as a ''northern infantry division, category B''. The division was transferred to the
12th Army following
60th Army Corps' disbandment.
In 1989, 535th Regiment was reconstituted as the Special Security Regiment of the
Nanjing Military Region.
In 1998 the division was reduced and reorganized as the 179th Motorized Infantry Brigade().
In April 2017, the brigade was reorganized as the 179th Light Combined Arms Brigade().
The brigade now stations in
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
,
Jiangsu Province
Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...
, as a maneuvering part of PLA
72nd Army.
References
*中国人民解放军各步兵师沿革, http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_a3f74a990101cp1q.html
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Infantry divisions of the People's Volunteer Army
179
Military units and formations established in 1949